Page 34 - PROGRAM IMPACT AND SATIFACTION AS SEEN THROUGH THE EYES OF HEAD START PARENTS

Parents wrote the following comments to describe the other factors that would make their neighborhood better:
 More trees, less asphalt
 More parks/ recreation areas with shaded playgrounds
 Parking
 Easier access to the grocery store. There’s a giant wall that we have to hop over.
 Make parks safe with no drug dealers
 More affordable housing
 Speed bumps so cars won’t speed by
 Close down stores that sell drugs
 Neighbors that don’t smoke as much
The greatest percentage of Spanish-speaking parents (68.7%) selected more nearby schools as the factor that would better their neighborhoods. Table 3 compares the percentage of English and Spanish-speaking parents for each factor for a better neighborhood.
TABLE 3: English and Spanish-speaking parents’ report of factors that would make their neighborhood better
Factors for a Better Neighborhood
English-speaking Parents
Spanish-speaking Parents
Less crime and violence
39.9%
60.1%
Less rundown environment
41.0%
59.0%
Less traffic congestion
46.0%
54.0%
Greater sense of safety and more security or police
38.5%
61.5%
Stronger connection with my neighbors
54.7%
45.3%
Other
55.6%
+
44.4%
More nearby grocery stores
42.5%
57.5%
More nearby schools
31.3%
68.7%
+
More parks or outdoor play and recreation
38.5%
61.5%
More community services
35.1%
64.9%
+ The greatest percentage for English and Spanish-speaking parents is highlighted.
Sepulveda was the Head Start Center with the greatest percentage of parents (62.9%) who indicated that less crime and violence would make their neighborhood better. Cohasset was the Head Start Center with the greatest percentage of parents (69.6%) who reported that more parks, recreation, and outdoor areas would make their neighborhood better. Cohasset was also the Head Start Center with the greatest percentage of parents (43.5%) who indicated that their neighborhood would be better if it had more nearby grocery stores. Noble also stood out because it had the greatest percentages of parents who selected two different factors; greater sense of safety or more security or police and a less rundown environment. Chart 23 presents the factors for a better neighborhood and the Head Start Centers with greatest percentage of parents reporting each.
CCRC’s Head Start Parents Page | 31 December 2014